Three major contenders bow out out of special election

Filner bested DeMaio in last year’s mayoral contest 53 percent to 47 percent as each side tried to portray the other as unfit for office because of a take-no-prisoners approach to politics.

If DeMaio had jumped into the mayor’s race, he would have been taking a huge political risk by going against many of his biggest supporters.

DeMaio and Faulconer have been longtime political allies, support the same fiscally conservative, socially moderate policies, and even used the same political consulting firm. A scenario in which they were pitted against each could have split Republican votes and hurt both of their chances of making the runoff.

Faulconer praised his former colleague for putting San Diego first.

“I want to thank him for that and for all he’s done to move our city forward,” Faulconer said. “Carl’s leadership will be put to good use in Congress, and he continues to have my full support.”

On the Democratic side, the biggest question had been whether Gloria would run. He took over as interim mayor on Friday after Filner resigned and has been widely praised along with Faulconer for helping negotiate Filner’s surrender.

Gloria said there’s too much work to be done to clean up the mess left by the Filner administration, which struggled to govern under a micromanaging boss bogged down by numerous controversies.

“In the few days since I assumed the duties as mayor, it has become clear to me that the problems left by Bob Filner are substantial and serious,” Gloria said. “The enormous task of cleaning up City Hall while ensuring District Three is represented requires me to lead a focused team effort that produces quick results for San Diego.”

Gloria added, “Thank you to the many supporters who have called and emailed, urging me to run. I am deeply appreciative of your help and guidance. There is no doubt that I will do a better job as interim mayor with so many San Diegans standing with me.”

Fletcher, the main beneficiary of Gloria’s decision, said, “San Diegans are fortunate to have a leader like Todd Gloria to guide our city through this period of transition with a steady hand. …I look forward to working with the City Council, and Council President Todd Gloria in particular, to move our city forward.”

Fletcher, a former assemblyman who ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year as a Republican turned independent, joined the Democratic Party in May. So far he’s been able to avoid a major challenge from within the party, but some Democrats aren’t keen on Fletcher being the party’s standard-bearer after less than four months in their ranks.

Fletcher, an Iraq War veteran who has been endorsed by unions representing the city’s firefighters and white-collar workers, formally kicked off his mayoral campaign Tuesday with a one-minute video. He said his focus will be on creating good jobs with good wages.

“When I was a Marine, we didn’t care what your party affiliation was,” Fletcher said. “We cared if you were committed to the mission that we were doing. And I think it’s time as San Diegans that we all commit ourselves to the mission of rebuilding our city and moving us forward.”